A FORMER Preston mayor is at loggerheads with council chiefs over the planned closure of a street which he believes is going to cause huge inconvenience to people living nearby.

Ted Butcher, who was the mayor in 1980, has joined forces with residents in Maudland Bank, Preston, after council chiefs backed a proposal to shut their street off Fylde Road.

Now the former councillor, of St Walburge Avenue, Preston, has launched a scathing attack on the town's present-day council members saying: "I was on the council for 22-years and there was never a time when councillors didn't represent what constituents wanted."

Mr Butcher's attack comes after councillors voted in favour of a five-year-old residents' petition to close the road after fears over child safety.

It will mean vehicles that normally go down Maudland Bank would be diverted to Pedder Street and Ashton Street which serve bus routes.

But current residents in the Maudsley Park area believe initial concerns are outdated because some of the people who signed the original petition have moved away.

Children

Mr Butcher added: "I am not happy with the response I have had from the council. Coun Andy Campbell -- chairman of transportation -- does not seem to care and has more or less said it's the council's decision to let it go ahead.

"There are hardly any children living on that street now and most of the residents who signed the original petition have moved away.

"Elderly residents on the street are upset about crossing Pedder Street to get to the bus stop because it will be busier than ever."

Residents also say they will be forced to travel miles for a five-minute journey.

Maudland Bank resident, Monica Duckworth, added: "It would also create a problem because we would loose the filtering system on the corner of Aqueduct Road and Fylde Street -- it will cause chaos not just for us but for other people in Lea.

Coun Andy Campbell said: "Mr Butcher's wife instigated the closure five years ago so we have come up with a suggestion.

"Immediately after the petition objecting the closure arrived at the Town Hall another one arrived from concerned parents on the street who were backing it .

"These people actually live on the street and have children and it seems the majority of people opposing it live off the street."